Apparatus for separating lateral portions of leaves from their stems.



No. 67!.846. Patented Apr. 9, l90l.

' L. P. WHITAKER.

APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING LATERAL PORTIONS 0F LEAVES FROM THEIR STEMS.

(Application filed Ja- (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet I.

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- INVENT'OR 2 2 M mi/M1019 No. 67!,846. Patented Apr. 9, IQOI.

L. P. WHITAKER. APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING LATERAL PORTIONS OF LEAVES FROM THEIR STEMS.

(Application filed Jan. 15. 1901.)

3 Sheets-Sheet z.

(No Model.)

INVENTOR W A tor/1 No. 67I,846. Patented Apr. 9, I901.

L; P. WHITAKER.

APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING LATERAL PORTIONS OF LEAVES FROM THEIR STEMS (Application filed Jan. l5. l9 Modem 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

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,UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LOUIS P. WHITAKER, .OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE PNEUMATIC TOBACCO STEMMER CO.-, OF SAME PLACE.

APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING LATERAL PORTIONS F LEAVES FROM THEIR STEMS.

SPEGIFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 671,846, dated April 9, 1901.

Original application filed January 17, 1900, Serial No. 1 ,77 9. Divided and this application filed January 15, 1901. Serial No. 43,391. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: point of the leaf and the natural toiighness Be it known that I, LOUIS P. WHITAKER, a of the fibers it is necessary to weaken or parcitizen of the United States, residing at Washtially or wholly sever them in order to remove ington, in the District of Columbia, have inthem from the stem with the lateral portions vented certain new and useful Improvements of the leaf and to prevent the leaf from being in Apparatus for Separating the Lateral Porstripped from the said fibers, which is not detions of Leaves from Their Stems; and I do sired in the tobacco manufactories.

hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, In carrying out my invention in its simplest and exact description of the invention, such form I take a leaf of tobacco, and seizing it 10 as will enable others skilled in the art to which with the fingers or by means of a suitable deit appertains to make and use the same. vice, preferably at the tip, I present it to the My invention consists in the novel features action of a current of air prod uced bya power hereinafter described, reference being had to ful blast, which tears the lateral portions of the accompanying drawings, which illustrate: the leaf from the central stem. During the I5 one form of apparatus for carrying my invenoperation the entire length of the leaf is subtion into effect, the said invention being fully jected progressively to the action of the blast disclosed in the following description and from the point of the leaf toward the butt, claims. which is conveniently accomplished by mov- This application is a division of my former ing the stem across the path of the blast.

20 application filed January 17, 1900, and given In Fig. 6 I have illustrated a simple mech- Serial No. 1,779. anism for carrying my invention into efiect. Referring to the said drawings, Figure 1 In this figure, A represents a tube which is represents a longitudinal sectional View of connected with an air-forcing device, in this an apparatus for carrying my invention into instance a fan or blower. The tube A is pref- Lz5 effect. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same erably provided with two nozzlesaa, arranged with the air-blast nozzles removed. Fig. 3 is at an angle to each other, as shown, so as to an enlarged top plan view of a portion of the discharge a strong blast of air on the leaf on carrier, the rotary knife, and air-blast nozopposite sides of its stem, and thereby rip or zles. Fig. trepresentsavertical longitudinal tear the lateral portions of the leaf from the 30 section of the parts shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 stem. Before being subjected to the action is a transverse vertical section of Fig. 2 on of the blast the leaf is cased or moistened, line 5 5. Fig. 6 is a detail view of another so as to make it flexible, and it has been form ofapparatus for carryingout myprocess. found by practical experiment that when in The object of my invention is to remove or proper case the lateral portions of the leaf 35 separate the stems of tobacco and similar will tear away from the stem in straight lines leaves from the lateral portions of the leaves; close to and along the sides of the stem and and it consists in the apparatus hereinafter will also tear from the stem and carry with described, in which the stem' is seized and them the laterally-growing fibers of the leaf held while the lateral portions of the leaves when the leaf is presented to the blast point 40 are subjected to the action of a current of air first. in the form of an air-blast and are torn or I prefer to locate in the path of the blast stripped from the stem. In order to secure discharged from the nozzles a, a a receiving a clean and uniform stripping of the lateral or guiding tube or casing C, as shown in Fig. portions of the leaf from the stem, I prefer 6, through which the air-current passes,car-

5 to provide some form of knife or cutter for rying with it the severed portions of the leaf the purpose of weakening, cutting, or severand leaving the denuded stem in the hand of ing the laterally-extending fibers of thelleaf the operator. when the stemming action is commenced at In Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, I have illustrated the butt or larger end of the stem. Owing a form of apparatus for carrying out my said 50 to the inclination of these fibers toward the invention in which the leaf is presented to the action of the air-blast from the butt first, in which case, as before stated, I advantageously employ a. device for weakening or cutting the lateral fibers, so that; they wvill come awa with the lateral Oxtions of the leaf, as owing to the manner e which these fibers grow they \vill not fear from) the stem with the leaf when the stemming action begins at the buttof the stem. In these figures D represents a table or bed supported by suitable legs (1 d and provided with an aperture therethrough, in which is mounted a tube E, preferably located in an inclined or nearly vertical position. In the upper or inlet end 6 of the tube is located a rotary cutter or knife F, which I have found advantageous for weakening or cutting the fibers. This knife is provided with a series of oppositelyinclined cutting edgesff, which slope toward each other, forming a V-shaped cutting device. The edges ff are shown in the drawings as beingin line with each other; but this is not essential. In this apparatus I employ a mechanical feeding device consisting of two belts G G, preferably of leather, (although they may be of any other suitable material,) having a portion of one belt lying parallel to and closely adjacent to a portion of the other belt, so as to be capable of gripping the butt of the stem between them. These one side of the travel of the belts and en,

gaging one belt, and an opposite series of lat orally-movable rollers h h, arranged on the opposite side of the travel of the belts and engaging the other belt. These guide-rollers are preferably grooved, and the movable rollers are pressed toward the stationary rollers' by springs. In this instance each roller h is shown as mounted on a horizontal slide h held in a guide k and provided with a spring h. The forward end rollers H H are preferably mounted on a plate H which is adjustable longitudinally of the machine by means of set-screws h h to tighten the belts, and the plate H may be clamped in its adj usted position by bolts or screws 72, h, passing through slots therein. Motion is imparted to the belts in any suitable manner, so as to cause the contiguous parallel parts thereof to travel in the same direction and at the same rate of speed. In the present instance the rollers H H are provided with intermeshing gear-wheels I I, to which motion is supplied from a driving-shaft I, provided with a pulley 1 said shaft being provided with a bevel-pinion 2', gearing with a similar pinion i and a vertical shaft 1 carrying a pinion '6 meshing with an idle pinion I engaging one of the gear-Wheels I.

A represents the air-pipe, connected with an air-forcing device B and provided 'with nozzles a a, which direct. the blasts into the tube E immediately in front of the center of the knife F and below the belts G G, the ea 1S of the nozzles being se arated far enou h to permit. D116 butts of the Steins to pass beuween then). 7

Below the table D, I prefer to provide an endless carrier L, having sides ll and mounted on rollers Z l to carry 0d the flexible portions of the leaves after they leave the tube E. One of the rollers Z is provided with a driving-pulley Z which receives motion from some suitable revolving part. In this instance I have shown the blower B provided with a driving-pulley b and a pulley b, which by means of a belt engaging it and the pulley Z drives the carrier L. The shaft of roller Z is provided with a pulley 1 connected by a belt f with a pulleyf on the shaft f of the rotary knife, and the shaft of said roller Z is also shown as provided on the opposite side of the machine with a pulley Z connected by a belt Z with the pulley I of the driving mechanism for the feed-belts.

I also indicate in Figs. 1 and 2 a carrier M, passing over a roller m (the other roller not being shown) for carrying off the cleaned stems.

In operation the leaves are fed into the machine by placing the end of the butt in betweenthe rollers H H, when belts G G will seize it and carry it under the blast-nozzles a a and across the knife F. As the successive portions of the leaf pass beneath the blast-nozzles and across the knife the lateral portions are ripped from the stem, and the knife assists the blasts by cutting or weakening the lateral fibers of the leaves. The lateral portions of theleaves pass down through the tube E upon the carrier L, and the stems are carried on by the belts G G and dropped upon the carrier M, by which they are carried to any suitable point.

I do not limit myself to the exact details of construction herein shown and described, as the same may be varied without departing from the essence of my invention.

Thenovel process of stemming tobaccoand other leaves herein disclosed is not claimed herein, as it forms the subject-matter of my former application filed January 17, 1900, and given Serial No. 1,779, of which this application is a division.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with a device provided with an ap erture for the discharge of the separated portions of the leaves, of a blast-nozzle arranged adjacent thereto and means for supplying air under pressure to said nozzle, substantially as described.

2. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves fromtheir stems, the combination with a tube for receiving and dis- ICC IIO

opposite sides of the stems, and an air-forecharging the separated portions of the leaves, of an air-blast nozzle arranged adjacent to the end of said tube and an air-forcing device connected with said nozzle, substantially as described.

3. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with a device provided with an aperture for receiving and discharging the separated portions of the leaves, of a plurality of blast-nozzles located adjacent to said aperture and arranged to direct blasts of air on ing device connected with said blast-nozzles, substantially as described.

4. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with means for holding the stem, of a blast-nozzle and means for supplying air under pressure to said nozzle, substantially as described.

5. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with a device for holding the stem and feeding it forward, of a blast-nozzle and an air-forcing device connected therewith, substantially as described.

6. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with a device for holding the stem and feeding it forward, of a blast nozzle means for supplying air under pressure to said nozzle, and mechanism for weakening the lateral fibers of the leaf, located adjacent portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with a rotary knife a blast-nozzle having its delivery end located adjacent to said knife and means for supplying air under pressure to said nozzle, substantially as described.

9. In apparatus for separating the lateral portions of leaves from their stems, the combination with a rotary knife a blast-nozzle having its delivery end located adjacent to said knife, an air-forcing device connected with said nozzle, and a carrier adapted to engage the stem, having its line of travel adjacent to said knife and the discharge end of said nozzle, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS P. WHITAKER.

Witnesses:

J. K. MOORE, B. W. BROOKETT. 

